Hi Photog82

I think any of the trips would be great.

I went to Yellowstone the last two years. I have a friend who owns a cabin in West Yellowstone that backs up against the Madison River and the park. It is great. As far as sleeping arrangements you could stay at the lodges at Mammoth, Old Faithfull, the Falls or at Yellowstone Lake. I would think you would need reservations well in advance. There are many public camp areas and those are first come first serve I believe, not completely sure because I never had the need. Back country camping requires a permit, and you have to show up in person to get it. You couldn’t count on the back country camping as you’re way of camping every night as you may not be able to get an area quick enough.

There are also cabins and rooms in West Yellowstone and Gardiner.

There are Grizzlies in certain areas if you get off the roads and trek in the back country in certain areas. Talk to the rangers, they will tell you where the danger is. I would suggest carrying bear spray. For the most part there is little danger, but if you have no backwoods or outdoors experience there is always danger.

You can drive around the park, which is what most people do. The park is huge and you could spend all day driving and not cover it.

For a person’s first trip I would recommend planning for several days watching water boil. The geyser basins are huge, beautiful and can easily take up most of your vacation.

To me, Yellowstone while beautiful, it is somewhat pre processed for your enjoyment as a park. It is not the wilderness one might expect. My brother and I were even speculating that much of the wildlife you see is staged. For instance, we were told a day in advance exactly where we would see a grizzly bear and cubs by a ranger. The next day at the exact location a wolf pack had supposedly killed a buffalo and there was a bear and her cubs feeding on it. The eagles are fun to watch, and there are two nests. They are by the entrances on the east and west side of the park. I found it curious that the nation’s national park would have the national symbol nesting by its gates on each side. I think if you want to see the wild part of the park you will need to backpack a bit.

Good Luck